Long ignored, voices like Bekooy's are being heard as elections loom this month and following a damning report from the independent Dutch Safety Board.

It accused the government and the field's operators, Royal Dutch Shell and Exxon Mobil Corp, of ignoring the threat of earthquakes linked to the massive Groningen gas field for years.

There are now questions about the future exploitation of the field that lies under the northern province of Groningen, with implications that reach well beyond its significance for Dutch state coffers.

Lessons from Groningen, which lies far from any natural fault line, feed into a debate over the threat posed by hydraulic fracturing in the United States, China, Britain and elsewhere.

The world's 10th largest gas field, Groningen is expected to supply the bulk of the Netherlands' annual gas needs of 20-30 billion cubic metres (bcm) until the mid-2020s.

Just looking at the charts, you make get your price if panic sets in and it is over sold. I think in two months you will get that chance. No place to store the oil and price will drop to 31.67 per barrel in nine weeks

Christoph Schmidt, chairman of the council of economic experts that advises the government, suggests that “the black zero should not be a fetish”. Germany’s municipal governments, not the federal one, should be the ones to raise public investment. But the bigger problem, he thinks, is that private investment is too low. In a free-market economy such as Germany’s, the government cannot command firms to invest more at home than abroad. If businesses have chosen another course, he says, it must be because, for whatever reasons, they find Germany an unrewarding place for investment.

As it may indeed be, Mr Schmidt’s council of five sages scolded Mrs Merkel’s government this month. Businesses worry about its largesse in public pensions, which defies Germany’s mix of an ageing population and shrinking workforce. Her coalition with the centre-left Social Democrats is raising pensions for mothers and letting people retire as young as 63 if they have worked for long enough.

Entrepreneurs also fret about the new minimum wage, due to take effect in January at the relatively high level of #$%$8.50 an hour. Contrary to hopes that this might boost domestic demand, says Mr Schmidt, some workers will simply lose their jobs. Moreover, those whose pay goes up will then claim less in welfare top-ups, so they will not have much extra income to spend. A further misstep, Mr Schmidt believes, is a muddled energy policy—subsidising solar and wind power and phasing out nuclear—that is merely raising companies’ energy costs. And yet another is a law to cap rising rents, which is likely just to discourage the building of new properties.

“THE world cannot afford a European lost decade,” says Jacob Lew, America’s treasury secretary. The latest European figures were uninspiring. In the third quarter the euro zone grew by just 0.6% at an annualised rate. This sluggishness was not primarily due to the countries hit hardest by the crisis—Greece’s economy grew faster than any other euro-zone country, and Spain and Ireland are recovering. Rather, it is the core countries that are exhausted—and few more so than the biggest, Germany. It grew by just 0.1% in the third quarter, after contracting by the same amount in the previous three months.

Angela Merkel, the German chancellor, has been subject to a rising chorus of foreign criticism. Germany should do more to stimulate domestic consumption and investment, goes the refrain. This would help countries like France and Italy as they undergo tough structural reforms. Higher imports would also reduce Germany’s current-account surplus, the largest in the world and a cause of imbalances within Europe and beyond. Stimulating demand would push up prices, which could save the euro zone from tipping into deflation. Prices in the zone rose at an annualised 0.4% in October, far below the 2% ceiling set by the European Central Bank (ECB).

Such demands are echoed by some at home. Marcel Fratzscher, an adviser to Sigmar Gabriel, the economics minister, says that Germany should boost investment for its own good. Much of Germany’s recent success, he argues, has been an “illusion” bought by underinvestment in everything from roads to education to factories. Wolfgang Schäuble, the finance minister, has responded by pledging an extra #$%$10 billion ($12.5 billion) in investment by the federal government over three years from 2016, on top of #$%$5 billion already earmarked for roads and bridges. Yet at barely 0.1% of GDP, that is more symbolic than substantial.

For centuries, a woman's role in German society was summed up by the three words: Kinder, Küche, Kirche (children, kitchen, church). Throughout the twentieth century, however, women have gradually won victories in their quest for equal rights. Despite significant gains, discrimination remains in united Germany. Women are noticeably absent in the top tiers of German businesses. They only hold 9.2% of jobs in Germany's upper and middle management positions.[18] Legislation on gender equality in family law and violence against women was slow to be reformed.

Germany has one of the lowest birth rates in the world. In 2012, its national fertility rate was 1.41 children per woman,[21] up slightly from the 2002 rate (1.31), but still well below the replacement rate of 2.1 children per woman. (By contrast, the United States had a fertility rate of 2.06 in 2012).[22] At the same time, Germans are living longer, with a life expectancy of 80.19 years (77.93 years for men and 82.58 years for women) - 2012 estimates.[23] This demographic shift is already straining the country's social welfare structures and will produce further economic and social problems in the future.[24] The Mikrozensus done in 2008 revealed that the number of children a German women aged 40 to 75 had, was closely linked to her educational achievement.[25] In western Germany the most educated women were the most likely to be childless. 26% of those groups stated they were childless, while only 16% of those having an intermediate education, and 11% of those having compulsory education stated the same. In Eastern Germany however, only 9% of the most educated women of that age group and only 7% of those who had an intermediary education were childless, while 12% of those having only compulsory education were childless. The reason for that east-western difference is the fact that the GDR had an "educated mother scheme" and actively tried to encourage first births among the more educated.

A growing number of Germans are functionally illiterate, functionally innumerate, or both. According to a study done by the University of Bremen in cooperation with the "Bundesverband Alphabetisierung e.V.", ten percent of youngsters living in Germany are illiterate and one quarter was able to understand only basic level texts.[6] 21.6 percent of all youngsters were only able to do mathematics at or below fourth-grade-level.[7] The percentage of illiterate and innumerate youngsters varies among ethnic groups and parents' socioeconomic status.

Issues created by reunification in 1990 have begun to narrow. Easterners now share a reasonably high standard of living, while some regions in Western Germany such as the Ruhrgebiet are economically declining.[12] Still, even as economic issues are abating between the two formerly separate parts of the country, societal and cultural divisions persist. Stereotypes and labels such as "Jammer-Ossi" (whining easterner), "Besser-Wessi" (arrogant know-it-all westerner), and western resentment towards the costs of unification point to continued prejudices.[13]

There is a discussion going on about hunger in Germany. Reverend Bernd Siggelkow, founder of the Berlin-based soup kitchen "Die Arche", claimed that a number of German children go hungry each day. He blamed the lack of jobs, low welfare payments, and parents who were drug-addicted or mentally ill.[3] Siggelkow has been criticized by a number of people who said there was no hunger in Germany. SPD politician and board member of the German central bank Thilo Sarrazin said it was possible to live on welfare without going hungry if one did not buy fast food, but was able to cook from scratch. He was criticized by The Left politician Heidi Knake-Werner, who said it was not right that "well-off people told poor people how to shop".[4]

So called problem neighbourhoods ("Problemviertel") exist in Germany. Those neighbourhoods have a high drop-out rate from secondary school and children growing up in a neighbourhood like this have only 1/7th the probability of going to college compared to a person growing up in another neighbourhood. Abuse of alcohol and drugs is common. Many people living in those neighborhoods are what is called a-people. They are poor ("arm"), out-of-work ("arbeitslos") and immigrants ("Ausländer"). Often those neighbourhoods were founded out of best intentions. Many districts that later became problem neighbourhoods were founded in the 1960s and 1970s when the State wanted to provide better housing for poorer persons. Big tenement buildings were built. The first tenants mostly were two-parent-families, not those one kind with at least one parent working and many were happy with their neighbourhoods. But when the unemployment rate started climbing more and more people were losing their jobs. Also, families who could afford it started moving into better districts and only those who could not afford to move stayed in districts such as Hamburg-Mümmelmannsberg.:[5])

Issues created by reunification in 1990 have begun to narrow. Easterners now share a reasonably high standard of living, while some regions in Western Germany such as the Ruhrgebiet are economically declining.[12] Still, even as economic issues are abating between the two formerly separate parts of the country, societal and cultural divisions persist. Stereotypes and labels such as "Jammer-Ossi" (whining easterner), "Besser-Wessi" (arrogant know-it-all westerner), and western resentment towards the costs of unification point to continued prejudices.[13]

According to some such as Kristina Schröder there is a growing anti-German sentiment among disadvantaged youths. The politician said that children were attacked for being German and claimed that she had repeatedly been called "German #$%$" in a political debate about Islamism.[17]

For centuries, a woman's role in German society was summed up by the three words: Kinder, Küche, Kirche (children, kitchen, church). Throughout the twentieth century, however, women have gradually won victories in their quest for equal rights. Despite significant gains, discrimination remains in united Germany. Women are noticeably absent in the top tiers of German businesses. They only hold 9.2% of jobs in Germany's upper and middle management positions.[18] Legislation on gender equality in family law and violence against women was slow to be reformed.[19][20] Until 2001 women were barred from serving in combat units in the Bundeswehr, being restricted to the medical service and the administration.

A growing number of Germans are poor and depend on welfare. In 2007 one in 6 children depended on welfare. That is up from only one in 75 in 1965.[2] Poverty rates seem to vary in different states, while in Berlin 15.2% of the inhabitants are poor. Families that are headed by a single parent and working-class families with multiple children are most likely to be poor.

There is a discussion going on about hunger in Germany. Reverend Bernd Siggelkow, founder of the Berlin-based soup kitchen "Die Arche", claimed that a number of German children go hungry each day. He blamed the lack of jobs, low welfare payments, and parents who were drug-addicted or mentally ill.[3] Siggelkow has been criticized by a number of people who said there was no hunger in Germany. SPD politician and board member of the German central bank Thilo Sarrazin said it was possible to live on welfare without going hungry if one did not buy fast food, but was able to cook from scratch. He was criticized by The Left politician Heidi Knake-Werner, who said it was not right that "well-off people told poor people how to shop".[4

Germany's awful industrial production figures released on Thursday are yet another reminder that the outlook for Europe's largest economy is increasingly looking grim. Unfortunately for Berlin, the country's problems are largely of its own making, as it ignored the plight of its eurozone neighbours.

Production rose just 0.8% in September, well below analysts expectations of a 2.3% boost. The figure compounded bad news from the previous month which saw a shocking 5.7% drop (now revised to 4.2%).

So what's going on? Well, a look at Germany's major trading partners might provide a clue. Of the top 12 export destinations, a majority are unsurprisingly other European countries with the top spot going to France.

Over recent years, demand for German goods and services from the faster-growing emerging markets, particularly China and Russia, has been a key driver of German export growth. But weakening demand is now exposing holes in this strategy.

Germany's awful industrial production figures released on Thursday are yet another reminder that the outlook for Europe's largest economy is increasingly looking grim. Unfortunately for Berlin, the country's problems are largely of its own making, as it ignored the plight of its eurozone neighbours.

Production rose just 0.8% in September, well below analysts expectations of a 2.3% boost. The figure compounded bad news from the previous month which saw a shocking 5.7% drop (now revised to 4.2%).

So what's going on? Well, a look at Germany's major trading partners might provide a clue. Of the top 12 export destinations, a majority are unsurprisingly other European countries with the top spot going to France.

Over recent years, demand for German goods and services from the faster-growing emerging markets, particularly China and Russia, has been a key driver of German export growth. But weakening demand is now exposing holes in this strategy.

The German government is helping with Turkish immigration by encouraging them to become part of the culture if they would like to live and work in the country. The government does not want to exile the Turks, but instead want them to become formal citizens of Germany. Many Germans find Turks to be threatening because they are taking their jobs but the government of Germany wants to Turks to become one with their culture instead of "aliens" to the culture and the indigenous people. the government want to solve these immigration problems while making both societies happy, but still the country is against Turks, Islams, and anyone who is coming into the country and working without citizenship. The German people are also getting upset with immigrants because the government is calling the people without citizenship part of their German culture. The immigrants pose a threat to the German working class while the government believes the country should be more populated and used by other people instead of be exclusive to only Germans.

Political Extremism
Political Extremism in Germany has increased by 3.8% in this past year to roughly about 25,000 people causing trouble around the country. This doesn't seem like a lot but 25,000 Neo#$%$s and communists creating violence toward immigrants and policemen is a big problem for everyone in the country, even if they are not directly affected by it. Domestic Islamic extremism is one of the larger problems in the country because it causes the most violence in the cities. In this picture, an anti#$%$ protest is going on which shows that the threat of the #$%$ party actively coming back is a worrisome threat for the whole country. There is a recent popularity toward anti-immigrant resentment, which lets the far right (Third Reich) evolve and become increasingly popular. The Eastern part of Germany, especially has a hatred toward immigrants due to their lack of jobs because of the foreigners taking them which increases the popularity of Neo#$%$'s in the East.

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